


Don't Wait For It To Happen

by MarieIsMissing



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: M/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-12
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-12-12 05:33:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20996294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarieIsMissing/pseuds/MarieIsMissing
Summary: In those few months since the war against Maliwan had become far easier to handle, he had heard less from Zer0. Of course before the war, Rhys was used to radio silence from his Assassin for months before any news would come up, he trusted Zer0 to do the job he hired them for, but due to this 'company merger' he tended to hear from Zer0 far more often. After Katagawa's defeat, however, Zer0 had moved up to Sanctuary to help the Crimson Raiders with their whole Calypso Twins issue. Rhys got it, he had always respected them for their loyalty, and Sanctuary was probably more of a family to Zer0 than their employer. Though Rhys couldn't help that nagging feeling that he felt a bit cheated.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Aaah this is my first fanfiction in a good few years, so hopefully you all enjoy my contributions! This was really fun to make, so if you all like it enough, I'd be happy to make more!
> 
> If you want some Zerhys art on the side of this story, feel free to visit my Tumblr - https://marieinpetrichor.tumblr.com/post/188005312142/sneak-peek
> 
> I'll be posting art for this story possibly in the future!

It had been a good few months since the Crimson Raiders had taken care of Rhys' whole Katagawa issue. And while yes, they had in fact been quite literally a single digit army, he had to admit that they did good work. Rhys was not surprised the more he thought about it, if the Firehawk had recruited Zer0 in the past, no doubt the Vault Hunters and other recruits apart of their small army were some powerful allies indeed.

In those few months since the war against Maliwan had become far easier to handle, he had heard less from Zer0. Of course before the war, Rhys was used to radio silence from his Assassin for months before any news would come up, he trusted Zer0 to do the job he hired them for, but due to this 'company merger' he tended to hear from Zer0 far more often. After Katagawa's defeat, however, Zer0 had moved up to Sanctuary to help the Crimson Raiders with their whole Calypso Twins issue. Rhys got it, he had always respected them for their loyalty, and Sanctuary was probably more of a family to Zer0 than their employer. Though Rhys couldn't help that nagging feeling that he felt a bit cheated. 

It was in the same month that Katagawa was out of his life that the Calypso Twins had been defeated as well, and the subsequent loss of the Firehawk. Rhys had personally attended the vigil for both Lilith and Maya. Rhys was vaguely familiar with the latter. Zer0 didn't tend to say much, but it was clear that they held a special respect for both of them in their time working with the Crimson Raiders. Hell, it was probably the first time they had worked with anybody to fight for a specific cause. 

The funeral took place a week after the Twin's defeat. Zer0 had invited him and Lorelai along to pay their respects. Rhys had never seen so many Vault Hunters in one place before, he was quickly intimidated. While traveling to Pandora, thoughts raced through his mind concerning whether they would bother to welcome a corporate type to such an event considering the Crimson Raiders history with people like him. Hell, he hadn't even been willing to help them in the first place due to his own war taking place had it not been for the Vault Hunters threatening to destroy some very crucial information. What courtesy did these people owe him during such a pivotal moment, after losing two women who were known leaders to their cause? Rhys had to steady himself, reminding himself that Zer0 had in fact invited him, he was a welcome guest, and the worst thing he could do was not show up at all. 

He did not expect to see Vaughn there. Sure he knew that Vaughn had been involved in the conflict, but not to this extent. He thought that Vaughn was apart of a different group altogether, whatever bandit clan he happened to find after a previous one's demise. As soon as he landed, in fact, his old best friend was the first person he spotted. There were already droves of Vault Hunters scattered around the area, it seemed like everyone else was just arriving. 

Rhys quickly walked up to Vaughn, seeing his friend as an anchor to hold himself steady in the sea of unfamiliar faces. Vaughn quickly noticed Rhys, a warm smile spreading across his face, "Bro! You made it, it's been way too long… Long enough that you have facial hair.."

Rhys cringed at the mustache comment, but smiled as well, greeting Vaughn with a fist bump, a gesture he'd not performed in years, he could practically feel his age. "Long enough that you took the pants out of the equation as well, looks like Pandora living's really working for you."

Vaughn chuckled, "No kidding! I've been through so many Bandit clans at this point I can't remember what each group got wiped out by, I can only dream why I've been the sole survivor of every one so far." He shrugged, "I imagine the Crimson Raiders' will work out a bit better."

"You're with the Raiders now?" 

"Yeah, Lilith gave me the task of keeping Roland's Rest out of COV hands during that whole chapter, now that that's…" Vaughn paused, sighing deeply, "Over with, I'm hoping to help out where I can."

Rhys put a hand on Vaughn's shoulder in an attempt of comfort, not completely sure how to proceed. "I hadn't really been in much contact with her before what happened, but I'm here to pay respects in any way I can."

Vaughn's smile came back, though muted under a reddened face and the threat of tears. "Thanks bro." He choked before pressing a hand to his face, muttering "Crimson Raiders never cry!" To himself a few times before taking a deep breath and looking back at Rhys, "We really need to catch up. I don't want to lose another friend after all this."

"I'll make sure to try and come this way when I can, bro." Rhys smiled.

"You made it safely/Glad you came to pay respects/Thanks for coming, Rhys."

Rhys leapt up in fright at the voice behind him for a moment before turning around to see the familiar faceplate of Zer0, a smiley plainly illuminated from their faceplate.

"Oh, Zer0! Yeah, I wouldn't have missed it. Thanks for the invite. I can only imagine how much they had meant, I mean, you fought with them for a long time, right?" Rhys fumbled over his words a little, clearly nervous and praying that he wasn't speaking nonsense.

"For a long while, yes/What you call a family/The closest for me." They nodded, arms crossed as they looked over to the statue of Roland that was the main centerpiece of the area. "I will return soon/Haven't forgotten Atlas/Still a war to win."

"Yeah, though after Katagawa's meltdown, we've mostly been able to handle the cancellation of Maliwan's 'merger'. Thanks to you and the Crimson Raiders, or course." Zero nodded at that. "Honestly, take your time tying up any loose ends here. You deserve it. I'll call you if shit hits the fan."

"Thank you for that Rhys/You have performed well yourself/I wish you much luck." As a heart emote showed up on Zer0's faceplate, the blood began to rush to Rhys' face as he could only think back to the first time he met Zer0. It was a consequence that he was reminded of that moment every time Zer0 used that damn emote and he'd be hard pressed to believe Zer0 didn't know what they were doing every time they used it. He felt rather dumb at the time, simply stuttering that Zer0 looked cool on that elevator rather than actually answering them about the Gortys project, but that heart emote they showed just made the situation a thousand times more embarrassing for him. He couldn't help but harp on the fact that that was the first thing he had ever said to Zer0 too.

Rhys was broken out of that train of thought when a Vault Hunter he knew as Brick (they hadn't met on perfect terms) stepped up to Roland's statue as a sort of stage, shouting to get everyone's attention. A blonde woman circled around him shouting to the crowd as well, "MAKE WAY FOR MY MAN, BRICK, EVERYONE! PAY ATTENTION! HE'S ABOUT TO DROP A SPEECH LIKE YOU'D NEVER BELIEVE! SHUT UP, SHUT UP, EVERYONE SHUT UP!" She continued in her yelling until everyone was quiet. "Thank you." She said, a smile that Rhys couldn't have ever attributed to a sane woman spreading across her face. "Now, ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Brick!" She skipped over to where another Vault Hunter Rhys had met on less than desirable terms, Mordecai stood.

Brick soon after began his speech. "We are here today to honor the lives of the two ladies who died to make sure the rest of us could keep on winning for them!" The blonde girl continued her commentary, though quieter than before, clearly respectful of Brick. "I knew Lilith from the very beginning! And from that beginning she laid down her life for what she believed in. And while we didn't see eye to eye on things, she was a Leader, a Vault Hunter, and a Crimson Raider until the very end. And she made sure each and every one of us damn well knew that." 

Cheers were immediate from the crowd of Crimson Raiders that were in attendance. The pure energy that came from everyone intimidated Rhys to an extent, even Vaughn was getting into it. Zer0 stood next to Rhys with a very subdued ':D' and quiet golf clap, it was honestly the most excited he had ever seen them.

Rhys spotted Brick helping up a girl, he believed her name was Ava, up onto were he was standing by Roland's statue. He didn't know her personally, but during the final fight against the Calypsos, he had definitely heard her helping out the Vault Hunters along with his soldiers. 

Soon enough, Ava began to speak. "I first met Maya when I was trying to nab a book from her." She let out a nervous chuckle, surveying the people around her. "She could have easily kicked my ass off planet, but she decided to take me in. I was.. there. There when it happened, and she died protecting me. I think that speaks more about the person she was than I could ever say." 

Brick began to speak again, "Maya was always protecting our asses, Lilith was always leading our asses, and it's our responsibility to go on living and fighting for them!" He ended as the crowd's cheers began yet again.

"I fought with Maya/Fought against Jack by her side/I miss her, truly." Zer0 spoke to no one in particular, head tilted slightly down when Rhys looked at them.

"I only spoke to her once. I think it was before the Vault on Promethea. She was one intimidating woman." Rhys chuckled. Zer0's helmet projected a ':)', which honest to god made Rhys' heart flutter before Zer0 walked off to go meet with the other Vault Hunters once more. Rhys spent an hour talking to Vaughn and speaking condolences to the others he recognized at the event before making his leave.

As his ship began to take off, Rhys looked back to the gathering that had since begun to taper off. He noticed what looked like a large man, looked like a badass one of the many Psychos he had encountered before on his adventures on Pandora. He sat by what Rhys recalled to be Maya's grave, in what looked like his own personal mourning. The image didn't leave Rhys' mind for the rest of the way home.

\------------

Since that funeral, it had been months since Rhys had last seen Zer0. He had kicked himself many times for not just asking Zer0 to notify him when he'd be back on the clock, because due to the lack of, y'know, a full blown corporate war, Zer0 would most likely be back on his regular methods. Which meant bare bones contact with Rhys in order to ensure his elusive position. It was a necessity, Rhys understood that, and maybe it was better that he didn't know if Zer0 had begun to protect Atlas again or not, as it might be a useful cover for them. Though Rhys would be lying if he said that he didn't miss the daily reports that came from Zer0 during the war. Rhys would be lying if he said he didn't miss Zer0 in general.

Especially after the Katagawa incident, where Rhys was sure for a few horrible seconds that Zer0 had actually betrayed him. Being proven wrong to that extent was the greatest feeling in the world, and being saved by Zer0 on top of that was just the cherry on top. Of course he attributed Katagawa's defeat to the other Vault Hunters, but knowing Zer0 had a hand in saving his life yet again just made him feel giddy.

Those events had also played a role in Rhys' mood over the months being slowly reduced to a short-temper that he could barely conceal from his employees. Meetings became longer, days dragged on, and his mind kept focusing back to wondering when Zer0 was going to show up again. He religiously checked his email and messages far more often than was healthy, and often found himself staring out of his office window, hoping that for some reason or another, he'd see a signature dark figure jumping the rooftops of the city.

One night, after a particularly restless bout of work and scanning through emails, Rhys nearly sent Zer0 a message to ask when they were coming back. After staring at the HUD of his Echo eye for a good twenty minutes, he closed it in frustration. Zer0 was one of his most valued employees, and for almost seven years had protected him from countless situations that other CEOs would have easily succumbed to. The one time Zer0 takes off after what must be a situation that would be more than overwhelming for someone less mentally sound than them, and Rhys can't handle the stress of it.

In pacing around his office, Rhys mentally listed all of the possible reasons he'd be acting so immature in a situation that he's easily dealt with a thousand times before with a thousand other employees. He could even handle when his favorite frozen yogurt place would close for a holiday, and he was rather obsessed with the treat. He then realized that he was comparing his employee with a frozen yogurt shop, and quickly dropped the thought.

He had been, in a way, dependent on Zer0's protection for so long. Sure he had an army attached to his company that did amazing work, but when they completed an assignment, he would be happy to hear the news, but go on with his life, compensate them for their efforts, etc. But whenever he'd get a message from his favorite Assasin, they occupied his attention completely. He wouldn't multitask when listening to Zer0's reports like he would with anyone else. Every one of their words quite literally held Rhy's attention, and it wasn't because of the Haiku format they were always in. Or maybe it was. Maybe that was something else he admired about the assassin. 

Zer0 didn't seem real to Rhys, if he was being honest. The sleek suit, the practically alien body language, their form of speaking, their constant use of emojis, all of it made Zer0 seem like this completelt unique being that Rhys was half afraid was just a figment of his imagination, for all the sense they made. Every time Zer0 disappeared from Rhys' view, he felt as if he'd never see them again, as if their rare presence would slip through his fingers into the void of his mind and simply remain as a fragmented memory that over the years he'd only remember as a bizarre dream. Zer0 felt like a dream to Rhys, the kind of dream from which you wake up far too soon only to realize none of it was real.

He knew Zer0 was real, of course, but that didn't change the fact that Rhys missed them. He missed them because he liked them. Rhys liked them a lot, in fact, at this moment Rhys could finally realize and admit the truth.

He loved Zer0.

Rhys' face burst into a harsh blush as he slumped back into his office chair from his half hour pacing around his office. The realization hit him harder than he thought, of course he had always known how he felt, but he never really admitted it to himself. He felt for Zer0 in a way that he was sure the assassin didn't. Sure, they called him their friend, but that was a far cry from anything Rhys was feeling at that moment. God, he didn't even know what Zer0 looked like behind the helmet! He didn't even know if Zer0 was into the whole 'dating scene', which Rhys could only laugh at the thought, how the hell could he deal with this kind of issue?

Ignore it.

Zer0 would come back to work eventually, Rhys had his own job to do. He couldn't just fuck up a perfectly good work relationship with his best employee because of some unrequited, unprofessional high school crush. Zer0 had standards, he had a corporation to run, and these thoughts were best left on the backburner until a better time. Who knows, maybe the attraction was simply born out of his near death experience with Katagawa and subsequent rescue by Zer0. Things would work themselves out.

\-----------

Zer0 reported in the next day.

Rhys woke up to an incoming call from an all too familiar caller ID. He almost immediately answered, sputtering out a half-awake greeting. "Z-zer0! Haven't heard from you in a while…" Rhys paused and chuckled awkwardly, "How are things.. uh… Going?"

"You fell asleep yet/again, I'll bet at your desk/am I correct, Rhys?" He could hear the amusement in Zer0's voice.

"Yeah, well, it's been busy the last week. We've pretty much taken care of all of Maliwan's troops, gotten the city under.. a lot of construction. To say the least." He chuckled nervously.

"Yes, I've noticed this/Architects instead of troops/It's a welcome change."

"Well, uh, how has your break been? Of course, not a break for you at least…"

"Yes, correct, in fact/I've been taking out targets/It's relaxing to me." Zer0 shrugged, "My free time is up/I'm returning to Atlas/I'll be there soon, Rhys."

"Oh, yeah, yeah, cool! I'm glad to hear that-and they hung up. Of course." Rhys sighed, slumping back into his chair. He soon buried his hands into his face in pure embarrassment. He was acting like a love-sick idiot! Zer0 is a trained assassin, of course they could pick up on something as simple as a crush! Rhys was ruined, he was sure that he couldn't handle himself if he talked to Zer0 in person...

Though he had to, he couldn't just hide behind and act like a lovesick idiot, so he sat down like the adult he was and began to work as he waited for Zer0's return.

About an hour or two later, (two agonizing hours in Rhys' opinion) Zer0 appeared behind Rhys while he was working and scared the absolute shit out of him. It was their signature greeting at this point, Rhys never understood why he never got used to it. He turned around to Zer0's signature ':D' and couldn't decide whether he was mad or not.

"Zer0, hey.. good to.. good to see you back." Rhys couldn't help but stumble over his words.

"It's good to be back/I did miss Promethea/much like a fresh start."

"Y-yeah, you could say that. Anywho, since the war, we've had a few Maliwan stragglers giving the construction crews a bad time. If you could look into that for me, I'd appreciate it."

"Such a simple task/Going easy on me, Rhys?/You should know better."

Rhys laughed nervously, "Well I guess I haven't given you many assignments since Katagawa.. I'll see what else I have, but I think this is the most pressing issue I can think of." He shrugged, "I think we're back to what it was before, just recon and making sure there aren't any guns aimed to my head."

Zer0 nodded, "I'll get to work then/expect me to check in soon/good talking to you." They flashed a quick ':)' before disappearing from sight.

Rhys sighed, his head quickly finding contact with his desk, and quickly deciding that he wanted to stay like that for the next decade. 'Soon' to Zer0, while quick in a business sense, meant a lifetime long wait to Rhys. Maybe it was for the better, he had just told himself not to get attached. Yeah, it was better to just decompress, and ignore things that put his professional relationship at risk. 

Rhys proceeded to lift his head off the desk, open his computer, and began to work.

\-------

It had been a week since Rhys' initial realization, and things had not gotten any better. Zer0 had apparently decided that they needed to check in every day, but of course at a different time of day. As to throw off any possible pinpoint to their schedule. If they even had one. Every day they would come in, report their progress to Rhys (they had the Maliwan stragglers taken care of within hours), and vanish until the next day. Around the midway mark, Rhys actually began to attempt to get their attention every time, but alas, he'd always chicken out at the last second and say something else like, "Good work!" Or whatever other generic thing his mind could come up with. He mentally slapped himself every time.

Every day he desperately wanted to tell Zer0 how much they really meant to him, how he wanted to get to know Zer0 more, how he wished he could give them a quick hug or kiss on the helmet, just anything that's let Zer0 know his true feelings. But every time he chickened out at the last second and would end up making an excuse. Every time he thought he'd be closer, every time he saw Zer0 though, he'd become more and more nervous. He felt a bit sorry for Zer0, Rhys wouldn't expect them to be any the wiser to the reason he had become more and more jittery around them. Or maybe they did, and feigned ignorance for Rhys' sake. Rhys prayed it was the former.

He would also occasionally spot Zer0 in the city watching over the construction, walking through Atlas headquarters, etc. He began with being able to mutter small greetings, but as time went on, he began to pretend not to notice them out of embarrassment over how he might act.

Rhys wasn't the closest to any of his employees, save for Lorelai whom he had quickly offered a better job than a coffee shop employee after her efforts in the war against Maliwan. Though she was normally off doing her job, so there was no one left to notice Rhys becoming more and more of a recluse as a result of not wanting to embarrass himself.

However, he did end up keeping his promise to Vaughn, and soon after the funeral began to call him regularly. It was because of this that Vaughn was the only one to spot his recent behavior. One week, Vaughn finally decided to confront Rhys about his recent behavior after bearing witness to Zer0's latest check in, and watching Rhys essentially shut down in their presence. He spoke up as soon as Zer0 left the office. 

"Uh.. bro, what the hell was that?"

Rhys' head quickly snapped to the monitor he was using to call Vaughn, as if he had forgotten he was in the middle of a call, "What? What the hell was what?" He spoke quickly.

"Rhys I haven't seen you act that way since college, bro, it was kind of weird… Who the hell were you talking to?"

"Oh uh.. that was Zer0. They've been working for me for a long while."

"The Vault Hunter? You got them to work for you?! I thought they were just being weirdly friendly at the funeral.."

"Oh yeah uh, kind of 'former Vault Hunter', though who knows. They get any of the assignments I give them done so quickly they could very possibly still be hunting Vaults in their spare time."

"Soooo… why were you acting like a lovestruck high schooler when they walked in?"

Rhys winced, "I really hoped I could derail the conversation enough for you to forget that. You know I can hang up on you?"

Vaughn laughed a bit, "Then I'd come over to Promethea and ask you in person bro, don't doubt it."

"I don't doubt it." Rhys gave a half hearted chuckle before his gaze fell onto his desk.

"So?" Vaughn tried to encourage him on.

"God, okay, but this doesn't get repeated to anybody, okay?" He only began again when Vaughn gave him a thumbs up. "Awhile ago, god it's been almost a year already, Katagawa tried to pose as Zer0 and kill me as a sort of 'last resort' effort I guess."

"Wait so do you still trust Zer0 is Zer0?"

"Yeah, yeah of course. Katagawa decided to dress exactly like Zer0 but 'Maliwan Flavored' so I think I can tell the difference." Rhys had a chuckle at that. "Anyways, when he was about to kill me, Zer0 came in out of nowhere and got me out of there. After the new Vault Hunters killed Katagawa Zer0 told me that they went radio silent for a while to ensure Katagawa wouldn't figure that they were trying to save me."

"Okay? Doesn't explain you're weirdness around Zer0 now."

"Well, I guess I kind of found out… I liked them? A lot? After that happened…?" Rhys took awhile to speak, reluctant to admit it to someone else.

"Rhys… bro, you have a strange preference." Vaughn laughed, "but understandable. You should be able to tell them though!"

"Vaughn, you don't understand! I'm their employer! Do you know how unprofessional that is? Plus, even if Zer0 was interested, it would just make me more of a target!"

Vaughn contemplated Rhys' words for a moment, "Okay, but you're obviously acting really weird around them, and if I can notice that, Zer0 can sure as hell notice it."

"I know, I'm working on it!" Rhys' face became more flustered.

"Hell, they might take it the wrong way. They might think you don't trust them after they went silent for so long." Vaughn shrugged, "If you ask me, you should just get it off your chest."

"Do you know how embarrassing it would be if I fucked up, Vaughn?"

"Can't be going any worse than it is now. At least you'd know." Vaughn was cut off as a loud crash was heard from behind him, "Oh craps, one of the crimson raiders just broke the water system again, I've got to make a call. See you later, Rhys!" Vaughn hung up before Rhys could say goodbye back.

Rhys sighed at his desk and sat there for awhile, contemplating Vaughn's advice. If he actually decided to tell Zer0, whether or not he was rejected, at least he'd know. At least he could feel some semblance of normal for the first time in months, whether that normalcy was dripping with happiness or sorrow. At least he could then focus on his job again.

So when Rhys activated his echo eye and scrolled down to Zer0's contact, he did admittedly take a good few minutes to make the call, but for the first time since the Katagawa incident, he called Zer0 of his own accord.

He nervously counted the seconds it took before Zer0 actually picked up. Rhys felt his heart cease momentarily as he heard Zer0's greeting.

"Good afternoon, Rhys/I am surprised you called me/Wasn't I just there?"

Rhys almost didn't answer back, "Yeah, yeah you were, uhm, I was in the middle of a call with Vaughn when you came over and I missed some uh.. information I needed to give to you. Could you come back for a little bit?"

"I'll be there soon." Zer0 quickly confirmed before hanging up. They must not have even had time to leave the building before Rhys had called them, because Zer0 was there in a matter of minutes (Not to mention the fact that the elevator to Rhy's office was comically slow). Rhys felt the urge to jump out the window in order to escape when Zer0 walked through his office, but Vaughn would never let him hear the end of it if he backed out now. Rhys stood up to face Zer0 as they came in.

"What is this info?/A new assignment I hope?/I'm eager to know."

"Well.. Zer0, uhm, this is more of a uh…" Rhys' face threatened to turn against him as he fumbled his words together. Zer0's head cocked to the side as they waited for Rhys to speak.

"So uhm, you remember when Katagawa pretended he was you and tried to kill me?"

"Please do not tell me/Katagawa is alive/Was really creepy."

"No, no nothing like that!" Rhys sighed, "I just.." he stopped, completely losing his ability to speak in the wake of fear he was feeling.

"You've been acting strange/" Zer0 started, "Avoiding me at all costs/Is this related?"

Rhys nodded, looking at the ground, his face had completely betrayed him at this point, blush making his face go red. "When you uhm.. god, well, when you saved me from him, fuck, I was so fucking worried that you actually started working for that asshole."

"Is that the problem?/I would have never helped them/Loyalty comes first." Zer0 ended with a quick ':)', trying their best to ensure Rhys.

"No, no not that… I mean, when you saved me, I was just.. over the moon, y'know? That I was right?"

Zer0 gave a slow nod, unsure of where Rhys was going with this tangent.

"Well, I gave it a lot of thought, and after seeing you again after all this time.. I just, I guess I realized how much…" Rhys took a deep breath, trying to get his bearings, "How much I really liked you?"

A simple '?' From Zer0's helmet.

Rhys' face was a tomato at this point, "God I sound like a high school kid… I uh, you're really cool Zer0, like, I've always thought you were really cool, and I guess I've never realized how much I do admire you until now." He said the last bit so quickly it was nearly unintelligible, "I don't know if you're even human, or if you're even capable of being interested but…"

Zer0 took a moment before their visor changed quickly to an alarmed '!' And they took a step back, which nearly gave Rhys a heart attack.

"This is… new to me/You are not wrong on that front/I need time to think." Zer0 stood still for a moment in contemplation, "Tomorrow." They nodded to Rhys before quickly departing.

Rhys sat on top of his desk for a moment, letting himself calm down. His heart was beating, his head felt hot, his hands were shaking, every part of him felt like the world was standing still and yet moving impossibly fast at the same time. He couldn't even remember if he had properly blinked his eyes in the past few minutes. Rhys was paralyzed with fear, run out of adrenaline, and had begun a doomsday countdown in his head for the next day.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rhys had felt drained for the rest of the day. Depressed was more like it. Sure, Zer0 had never given him a definitive answer as to whether they were interested, but really?

Rhys had felt drained for the rest of the day. Depressed was more like it. Sure, Zer0 had never given him a definitive answer as to whether they were interested, but really? Rhys knew that there was a chance, that it was a gamble, but a gamble with the undeniable feeling of dread realizing how little of a chance you have to win something that could possibly change your life for the better. And being with Zer0, Rhys hoped it wouldn't end in disaster if they said 'yes'.

Had Zer0 ever been with anyone? Had they ever felt for anyone? Were they capable of feeling this way? Rhys had nothing to go on but Zer0's undeniable sense of loyalty, which was endearing, and a possible hint to whether they could truly feel attraction towards someone. But no hint as to whether Zer0 felt that way towards Rhys. While Rhys prayed that whole day through the rest of the paperwork, heavily sugared coffees, and business calls, that Zer0 felt the same, he felt as if tomorrow, he'd get a letter of resignation rather than a confirmation of their feelings. 

Rhys' work that day kept him up until the early morning of the next day, and by that time, Rhys was out of it mentally, physically, and emotionally. He trudged through the Atlas building, eager to get to his home, though rather neglected considering he spent most of his time in his office. Though Atlas wouldn't blow up in a day without him. If anything, Atlas as a whole was taking it slow after recent events. Reconstruction was the mail goal at the moment, and Rhys felt as if it was fair he could have a few moments to himself in his own home, no random employees walking in, no business calls.

That night Rhys found it hard to do much else than slip off his shoes and jacket, and collapse on his bed still dressed in the day's attire. Yet still, even laying in bed, impossibly tired, Rhys stared at the ceiling awake for what must've been half an hour worrying about the next day's events before finally succumbing to sleep.

\---------

Rhys awoke around four hours later with a panicked start, he felt more awake, but his head throbbed in pain and his joints felt weak. He couldn't decide whether he felt better before he went to sleep or after he woke up. Nevertheless, he had to make it to work at some point. 

Begrudgingly, he got up, ate breakfast, took a shower, got dressed, and by the end of it he felt.. marginally better than he did before. Still terrified to enter his own office, still scared of the inevitable depression he was going to be put in.

He solemnly trudged through the Atlas building, not bothering to hide his current emotions but also still making an effort to greet all of the guards and employees he passed. He earned a large amount of worried glances and hurried whispers, but he frankly didn't care at that point. He felt like death, and he was pretty sure he was going to die after the day was over anyways, so who really cared?

Rhys nearly had a heart attack when he entered his office. Zer0 was already there, and had most likely been waiting, sitting on one of the couches. They immediately looked up when Rhys entered, and Rhys nearly booked it out of there the moment they did. He tried to force a greeting, but he just ended up stuttering before he gave himself a moment to think, took a deep breath, and asked, "How.. how long? Have you been sitting there, I-I mean?"

"Awhile, I admit/The guards said you had just left/Thought you'd be right back."

Rhys did a double take, Zer0 had been waiting since he had gone home! "Why did you wait that long, I went home to sleep! Didn't you say 'Tomorrow' or whatever?"

"When I had arrived/It was the next day, you know/early nonetheless." Zer0 displayed ':/' on their visor, "You stay up quite late/Under the impression you/Wouldn't sleep last night."

"I mean, you weren't wrong.. it still took me a damn long time to sleep after yesterday.." Rhys' face betrayed him then, the blush creeping back to his cheeks. "Look, I know what I said was unprofessional-" he was cut off by Zer0 standing up off the couch.

"A 'relationship'/Would make you a target, Rhys/You do know that, right?"

"Yeah, I told Vaughn as much.." Rhys nervously scratched the back of his head, "I'm sorry, I know you probably wouldn't feel the same, I just-" He was interrupted again.

"You misunderstand/I never said I wasn't/Interested, Rhys." Rhys' eyes darted up to Zer0 in pure shock as they spoke. "But this interest/Could put you in much danger/You do know as much."

"Wait, wait, wait." Rhys put a pause on the situation, trying to contemplate Zer0's words, "But you're interested? Really? Seriously? You're not lying?" Zer0 gave him a quick nod, "I… That's…" Rhys had to sit down on the couch before continuing, Zer0 watching him intently, a bit worried that he'd up and pass out.  
"I know that it's dangerous, you think I haven't counted that? But.. I've been through a lot, you know that?"

Zer0 gave Rhys a other nod, sitting down next to him as Rhys continued. "Plus, I mean, I already hired you to help essentially guard Atlas, I can't imagine… Look I just, I want to try this out, okay? That's it, that's the point."

Zer0 remained silent for awhile longer, "You must realize/I've never done this before/This is new to me." They displayed a quick ':|'. "I do like you Rhys/Though I am unsure of how/to proceed from here."

Rhys let out a chuckle, more of a sound to decompress the stress he had built up through this entire conversation. He glanced at Zer0, though not making eye contact with their visor. "I missed you, you know? When you went to Sanctuary, I know I gave you the time off but god.. I couldn't pay attention to anything."

Zer0 responded with a ':)' before reaching out and grasping Rhys' hand, an action that caused Rhys' face to turn a more vibrant shade of red, using his free hand to obscure his face. "I did miss you too/Compared to Santuary/You are equal, Rhys." 

Rhys looked up at Zer0's visor, a shining '<3' on display. In that moment, Rhys could only think of one course of action as his mind went into an adrenaline based rush of emotion. He squeezed Zer0's hand and kissed their visor right where the emoticon was being displayed. Rhys had pulled back quickly after, and Zer0 had even recoiled in surprise as well, before quickly gaining back their composure.

"I think I can get/Used to this new path you are/Leading me on, Rhys." Zer0 carefully let go of Rhys' hand, standing up, "However I must/Get back to protecting your/Construction workers." The pout that Rhys gave them was not lost on them as they continued, "You know I'll be back/In fact, If I may escort/You back home tonight."

Upon further thought, Zer0 expanded on the thought, "I believe you should/Go home more often to rest/I worry for you." They ended with a ':)' before disappearing.

Rhys sighed, realizing how long the day was going to be now that he wasn't scared of Zer0 rejecting him anymore, but now impossibly excited to see them again that night.

\----------

Zer0 kept their promise, appearing again just around the middle of the night as Rhys was scrolling through emails from various sources, a message about college work-study opportunities here, a proposal for a new weapon there, it was all rather mundane at this point. Rhys was happy for it. Mundane was exactly what he had needed as of late.

However, this time Rhys was happy to be startled by the voice of Zer0 traveling down the hallway of his dark office, and greeted them with a genuine smile and a tired yawn.

"It seems you need sleep/Come on, I will take you home/I did promise that." Zer0 offered a hand to Rhys, who took it and stumbled out of his chair in a tired stupor, collapsing against Zer0, nearly falling asleep then. 

"Do you even know where I live?" Rhys laughed deliriously.

"Your home is right in/The Atlas tower you know/Do you ever leave?" Zer0 joked.

"Sometimes.." Rhys shrugged, picking himself up and heading down the hall with Zer0 walking next to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is the end of this story in particular, but I'll still be making more Zerhys fanfiction and art in the future to expand on this and other ideas!


End file.
